Nothing ventured, nothing gained

To my friends, colleagues, and family, may you have a Happy and prosperous new year filled with good fortune.

This Chinese new year (春节 - chūn jié) falls on a Sunday the 29th of January and is also known as the Year of the Dog. Chinese new year (or “The Spring Festival”) marks the first day of the lunar new year. It ends 15 days later on the second full moon of the lunar new year also called “The Lantern Festival”)

In case you’re feeling left out, I’ve come up with a short list of things you can do to make your Chinese new year more enjoyable.

• Learn to offer seasonal greetings in Mandarin. Practice saying 恭喜发财 (gōng xǐ fā cái), which means “Wishing you a prosperous new year.” 新年快乐 (xīn nián kuài lè), which means “Happy New Year.” And my personal favorite: 国际化软件不容易 (gúo jì huà ruǎn jiàn bù róng yì), which means “Software internationalization is non-trivial.”
• Eat a lot. In Mandarin, the Lantern Festival is written 元宵节 (yuán xiāo jié). Yuanxiao phonetically sounds like 圆宵, which literally means “round overnight.” You see, during this week, massive amounts of sweet or meat filled dumplings are consumed by about 3 billion people.
• Chinatown. Head down to your local Chinatown and partake in the festivals. Celebrations go on for not just 1, not just 8, but 15 days. FIFTEEN.

And of course, in the spirit of maintaining balance, here are three things you shouldn’t do on Chinese new year.

• Do not get a Chinese tattoo. Because showing off your new tattoo that’s above your ass, to your asian friends, really isn’t that spiritual, especially if it says “Beef and Broccoli.”
• Do not wear black. Black clothes signify bad fortune. Instead, wear something red or gold which signifiy happiness and good luck.
• Do not buy a chihuahua and walk around like Paris Hilton. Ok, I was really going to finish up with “Don’t clean your house.” Sweeping your house during this time is considered the equivalent of sweeping away your good luck.

平安顺心 (píng ān shùn xīn) - Be safe and well